Louvain Rees ⚰️
@hellohistoria.bsky.social
BBC award-winning Historian ✍️
Death, Wales & Psychiatry 💀
Glamorgan County Lunatic Asylum 🧠
Workhouses | Poor Law | Lunacy 🧠
🥇BBC History Extra '30 under 30' 📚
📍Cardiff | views are my own • she/her
🔗 www.linktr.ee/louvainrees
Death, Wales & Psychiatry 💀
Glamorgan County Lunatic Asylum 🧠
Workhouses | Poor Law | Lunacy 🧠
🥇BBC History Extra '30 under 30' 📚
📍Cardiff | views are my own • she/her
🔗 www.linktr.ee/louvainrees
Pinned
PSA 📢
A lot of my research is centred around death, psychiatry, and mental health history.
Please be aware that some of my posts may be upsetting or uncomfortable to read.
Please keep this in mind when reading my posts
✨️
A lot of my research is centred around death, psychiatry, and mental health history.
Please be aware that some of my posts may be upsetting or uncomfortable to read.
Please keep this in mind when reading my posts
✨️
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
The @ihr.bsky.social #London #SummerSchool 2026 is now booking on the theme of 'Sickness & Health'. From the Black Death to Covid-19. Use code HEALTH10 before 24th Jan to get 10% discount! Bursaries available www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...
November 24, 2025 at 4:00 PM
The @ihr.bsky.social #London #SummerSchool 2026 is now booking on the theme of 'Sickness & Health'. From the Black Death to Covid-19. Use code HEALTH10 before 24th Jan to get 10% discount! Bursaries available www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...
ychydig yn hwyr, ond blwyddyn newydd dda 🎉
a bit late, but happy new year 🎉
a bit late, but happy new year 🎉
January 1, 2026 at 8:46 PM
ychydig yn hwyr, ond blwyddyn newydd dda 🎉
a bit late, but happy new year 🎉
a bit late, but happy new year 🎉
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
PSA 📢
A lot of my research is centred around death, psychiatry, and mental health history.
Please be aware that some of my posts may be upsetting or uncomfortable to read.
Please keep this in mind when reading my posts
✨️
A lot of my research is centred around death, psychiatry, and mental health history.
Please be aware that some of my posts may be upsetting or uncomfortable to read.
Please keep this in mind when reading my posts
✨️
January 20, 2025 at 10:00 AM
PSA 📢
A lot of my research is centred around death, psychiatry, and mental health history.
Please be aware that some of my posts may be upsetting or uncomfortable to read.
Please keep this in mind when reading my posts
✨️
A lot of my research is centred around death, psychiatry, and mental health history.
Please be aware that some of my posts may be upsetting or uncomfortable to read.
Please keep this in mind when reading my posts
✨️
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
Blwyddyn newydd dda o Faesteg!
December 31, 2025 at 10:35 PM
Blwyddyn newydd dda o Faesteg!
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
Happy New Year 🎉
New Year's Eve thoughts from the 1873 Diary of John Thomas, Royal Harpist 📝
'The Almighty be thanked for all his loving mercies during the past year & may he grant us his blessings during the coming year!'
#Wales #HappyNewYear
New Year's Eve thoughts from the 1873 Diary of John Thomas, Royal Harpist 📝
'The Almighty be thanked for all his loving mercies during the past year & may he grant us his blessings during the coming year!'
#Wales #HappyNewYear
January 1, 2026 at 12:27 PM
Happy New Year 🎉
New Year's Eve thoughts from the 1873 Diary of John Thomas, Royal Harpist 📝
'The Almighty be thanked for all his loving mercies during the past year & may he grant us his blessings during the coming year!'
#Wales #HappyNewYear
New Year's Eve thoughts from the 1873 Diary of John Thomas, Royal Harpist 📝
'The Almighty be thanked for all his loving mercies during the past year & may he grant us his blessings during the coming year!'
#Wales #HappyNewYear
Happy New Year 🎉
New Year's Eve thoughts from the 1873 Diary of John Thomas, Royal Harpist 📝
'The Almighty be thanked for all his loving mercies during the past year & may he grant us his blessings during the coming year!'
#Wales #HappyNewYear
New Year's Eve thoughts from the 1873 Diary of John Thomas, Royal Harpist 📝
'The Almighty be thanked for all his loving mercies during the past year & may he grant us his blessings during the coming year!'
#Wales #HappyNewYear
January 1, 2026 at 12:27 PM
Happy New Year 🎉
New Year's Eve thoughts from the 1873 Diary of John Thomas, Royal Harpist 📝
'The Almighty be thanked for all his loving mercies during the past year & may he grant us his blessings during the coming year!'
#Wales #HappyNewYear
New Year's Eve thoughts from the 1873 Diary of John Thomas, Royal Harpist 📝
'The Almighty be thanked for all his loving mercies during the past year & may he grant us his blessings during the coming year!'
#Wales #HappyNewYear
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
#NewYearsDay 🎆
Hel Calennig 🍎
It was the custom to give gifts on New Year's Day.
Children would gather in little groups and go from house to house, wishing the occupants a Happy New Year and Good Health.
museum.wales/articles/118...
#Wales #History
Hel Calennig 🍎
It was the custom to give gifts on New Year's Day.
Children would gather in little groups and go from house to house, wishing the occupants a Happy New Year and Good Health.
museum.wales/articles/118...
#Wales #History
January 1, 2026 at 10:54 AM
#NewYearsDay 🎆
Hel Calennig 🍎
It was the custom to give gifts on New Year's Day.
Children would gather in little groups and go from house to house, wishing the occupants a Happy New Year and Good Health.
museum.wales/articles/118...
#Wales #History
Hel Calennig 🍎
It was the custom to give gifts on New Year's Day.
Children would gather in little groups and go from house to house, wishing the occupants a Happy New Year and Good Health.
museum.wales/articles/118...
#Wales #History
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
#NewYearsEve ✨️
Nos Galan Road Races 🏃🏼♂️
The race celebrates the life and achievements of Welsh runner Guto Nyth Brân.
Guto is said to have run 12 miles in 53 minutes 🏃🏼♂️
www.rctcbc.gov.uk/EN/Events/No...
#Wales #History
Nos Galan Road Races 🏃🏼♂️
The race celebrates the life and achievements of Welsh runner Guto Nyth Brân.
Guto is said to have run 12 miles in 53 minutes 🏃🏼♂️
www.rctcbc.gov.uk/EN/Events/No...
#Wales #History
December 31, 2025 at 11:57 AM
#NewYearsEve ✨️
Nos Galan Road Races 🏃🏼♂️
The race celebrates the life and achievements of Welsh runner Guto Nyth Brân.
Guto is said to have run 12 miles in 53 minutes 🏃🏼♂️
www.rctcbc.gov.uk/EN/Events/No...
#Wales #History
Nos Galan Road Races 🏃🏼♂️
The race celebrates the life and achievements of Welsh runner Guto Nyth Brân.
Guto is said to have run 12 miles in 53 minutes 🏃🏼♂️
www.rctcbc.gov.uk/EN/Events/No...
#Wales #History
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
Hello 🌞
I seem to have a few new followers! 👋
I am a social historian specialising in death and working-class histories in Wales 🏴
I hope you'll enjoy my ramblings ✨️
• linktr.ee/louvainrees
• hellohistoria.substack.com
• instagram.com/louvainrees
#Wales #History
I seem to have a few new followers! 👋
I am a social historian specialising in death and working-class histories in Wales 🏴
I hope you'll enjoy my ramblings ✨️
• linktr.ee/louvainrees
• hellohistoria.substack.com
• instagram.com/louvainrees
#Wales #History
December 20, 2025 at 7:50 PM
Hello 🌞
I seem to have a few new followers! 👋
I am a social historian specialising in death and working-class histories in Wales 🏴
I hope you'll enjoy my ramblings ✨️
• linktr.ee/louvainrees
• hellohistoria.substack.com
• instagram.com/louvainrees
#Wales #History
I seem to have a few new followers! 👋
I am a social historian specialising in death and working-class histories in Wales 🏴
I hope you'll enjoy my ramblings ✨️
• linktr.ee/louvainrees
• hellohistoria.substack.com
• instagram.com/louvainrees
#Wales #History
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
Did medieval people buy each other Christmas gifts? New Year's Day was the main gifting day, but little is known about everyday people's present giving. Our project on London's customs records has uncovered a wealth of affordable items imported around this time: gloves and hats to toys and rattles🧵
Medieval Londoners’ cheaply imported mass-produced Christmas gifts look surprisingly familiar
We often imagine medieval life as dull, dirty and short, with little in the way of material comfort or decoration. However, medieval Londoners were importing toys, treats and trinkets by the boatload ...
theconversation.com
December 22, 2025 at 3:56 PM
Did medieval people buy each other Christmas gifts? New Year's Day was the main gifting day, but little is known about everyday people's present giving. Our project on London's customs records has uncovered a wealth of affordable items imported around this time: gloves and hats to toys and rattles🧵
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
What did Christmas look like in the 1800s? Explore Thomas Sopwith’s diaries for intimate, candlelit scenes of family, church services, presents, and Victorian festive traditions. A warm read this season!
Find out more: blogs.ncl.ac.uk/speccoll/202... #Christmas
Find out more: blogs.ncl.ac.uk/speccoll/202... #Christmas
December 23, 2025 at 1:30 PM
What did Christmas look like in the 1800s? Explore Thomas Sopwith’s diaries for intimate, candlelit scenes of family, church services, presents, and Victorian festive traditions. A warm read this season!
Find out more: blogs.ncl.ac.uk/speccoll/202... #Christmas
Find out more: blogs.ncl.ac.uk/speccoll/202... #Christmas
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
Here's a festive edition of 'Reading from the Archives' where we explore Christmas traditions and use sound archives to uncover memories of Christmas celebrations at the turn of the 20th century. #readingfromthearchives #norfolkrecordoffice youtu.be/7QnTp0x0-j0?...
Hearing History: The voices of Christmas Past
A special edition of our popular 'Reading from the Archives', in this talk we explore Christmas traditions and use sound archives to uncover memories of Christmas celebrations at the turn of the 20th…
youtu.be
December 23, 2025 at 2:50 PM
Here's a festive edition of 'Reading from the Archives' where we explore Christmas traditions and use sound archives to uncover memories of Christmas celebrations at the turn of the 20th century. #readingfromthearchives #norfolkrecordoffice youtu.be/7QnTp0x0-j0?...
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
#ICYMI the latest #Railway200 blog comes from the Railway Work, Life & Death project!
Co-lead Mike looks at #Disability on the railways in the past, particularly amongst the workforce, as seen through the lens of the project.
railway200.co.uk/celebrating-...
Co-lead Mike looks at #Disability on the railways in the past, particularly amongst the workforce, as seen through the lens of the project.
railway200.co.uk/celebrating-...
Celebrating disabled railway workers
For Disability History Month, Dr Mike Esbester, Senior Lecturer in History at the University of Portsmouth and co-lead of the Railway Work, Life & Death project, explores how people with disabilities…
railway200.co.uk
December 23, 2025 at 8:45 AM
#ICYMI the latest #Railway200 blog comes from the Railway Work, Life & Death project!
Co-lead Mike looks at #Disability on the railways in the past, particularly amongst the workforce, as seen through the lens of the project.
railway200.co.uk/celebrating-...
Co-lead Mike looks at #Disability on the railways in the past, particularly amongst the workforce, as seen through the lens of the project.
railway200.co.uk/celebrating-...
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
When your surgeon's absolutely buzzing to be in a Santa suit.
Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, 1913
Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, 1913
December 22, 2025 at 7:40 PM
When your surgeon's absolutely buzzing to be in a Santa suit.
Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, 1913
Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, 1913
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
These brass name plates were taken from dental surgeon Thomas Dyke's practice.
His premises was listed at Bank House, 11 Church Crescent in Dumfries in 1911.
His premises was listed at Bank House, 11 Church Crescent in Dumfries in 1911.
December 22, 2025 at 12:03 PM
These brass name plates were taken from dental surgeon Thomas Dyke's practice.
His premises was listed at Bank House, 11 Church Crescent in Dumfries in 1911.
His premises was listed at Bank House, 11 Church Crescent in Dumfries in 1911.
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
Our home is built on the site of what was several buildings, with some parts dating back to the 1720s. The 1st floor landing still looks much like the 1920s interior and has many original features.
Book onto one of our tours to see for yourself: https://bit.ly/445J2I3
#HistNursing
Book onto one of our tours to see for yourself: https://bit.ly/445J2I3
#HistNursing
December 29, 2025 at 12:35 PM
Our home is built on the site of what was several buildings, with some parts dating back to the 1720s. The 1st floor landing still looks much like the 1920s interior and has many original features.
Book onto one of our tours to see for yourself: https://bit.ly/445J2I3
#HistNursing
Book onto one of our tours to see for yourself: https://bit.ly/445J2I3
#HistNursing
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
Just asked my mother if she had any memories of her Aunt Violet. She said: "Mad as a box of frogs and liked fur coats" 👌🏻
I've been doing some research this evening on my great aunt Violet, who had an affair with a Grimsby paint salesman called Reginald, so her husband Albert filed for divorce. Albert was killed at war a year later, posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross, and described as "the bravest man of the war"!
December 30, 2025 at 8:31 PM
Just asked my mother if she had any memories of her Aunt Violet. She said: "Mad as a box of frogs and liked fur coats" 👌🏻
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
A favourite family story. In February 1965 my grandmother Vera Cox (1913 - 1986) was walking home from work when she came across a big Alsatian dog with no owner in sight. She said something along the lines of 'here, doggy', gave it a pat, and told my young dad about it when she got home.
Anyway:
Anyway:
December 30, 2025 at 9:44 AM
A favourite family story. In February 1965 my grandmother Vera Cox (1913 - 1986) was walking home from work when she came across a big Alsatian dog with no owner in sight. She said something along the lines of 'here, doggy', gave it a pat, and told my young dad about it when she got home.
Anyway:
Anyway:
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
On the record, as somebody who regularly goes to places knowing more than the tour guide, I do not ever correct them because like. I’ve also been a tour guide and none of them are paid enough. If it’s egregiously wrong I might stay afterwards and chat but with a very big tip
What kind of asshole calls a tour guide a liar to their face?!
December 30, 2025 at 1:15 PM
On the record, as somebody who regularly goes to places knowing more than the tour guide, I do not ever correct them because like. I’ve also been a tour guide and none of them are paid enough. If it’s egregiously wrong I might stay afterwards and chat but with a very big tip
It's that time of year when everyone shares their New Year's resolutions 🎉
Instead of a big list of things I need to do to improve myself, I've decided to compile a list of interesting goals I want to achieve in 2026 🐸
Instead of a big list of things I need to do to improve myself, I've decided to compile a list of interesting goals I want to achieve in 2026 🐸
![The list contains a series of personal goals and "bucket list" items, many of which focus on genealogy, nature, and personal growth.
Checklist Items:
[Redacted Item]
Speak more Welsh to Olivia & Fin
Share more of my work
Learn five new skills
Go rockpooling
[Redacted Item]
Travel on trains more
Walk barefoot through a meadow
Make friends with the two cats
Meet at least four new creatures
Swim in St Winifred's Well
Swim in Chalice Well
Meet a frog at every stage of its cycle](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:6khwbcjlzf24liywdat6avgd/bafkreigad4yusdh6snpbd5ncf4fqqngg2sm4hzi3blzs7hfqeam2zhkoza@jpeg)
December 28, 2025 at 9:58 PM
It's that time of year when everyone shares their New Year's resolutions 🎉
Instead of a big list of things I need to do to improve myself, I've decided to compile a list of interesting goals I want to achieve in 2026 🐸
Instead of a big list of things I need to do to improve myself, I've decided to compile a list of interesting goals I want to achieve in 2026 🐸
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
Tacky and chaotic Christmas decorations in an 1100 year old building be like...
December 28, 2025 at 8:40 PM
Tacky and chaotic Christmas decorations in an 1100 year old building be like...
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
Seeing as the call for submissions is now open, what would you select as a part of 'intangible cultural heritage' in England, Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland?
livingheritage.unesco.org.uk/get-involved...
livingheritage.unesco.org.uk/get-involved...
View Submitted Elements | Browse Living Heritage EOIs
Browse expressions of interest submitted to the UK living heritage inventories. Search by nation or category, spot what's missing, connect with similar groups, and avoid duplicate submissions.
livingheritage.unesco.org.uk
December 28, 2025 at 8:36 PM
Seeing as the call for submissions is now open, what would you select as a part of 'intangible cultural heritage' in England, Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland?
livingheritage.unesco.org.uk/get-involved...
livingheritage.unesco.org.uk/get-involved...
Reposted by Louvain Rees ⚰️
A chilly winter hike around Llyn Cau mountain lake below Cader Idris, in Eryri/Snowdonia this afternoon 🥰 ⛰️❄️
December 27, 2025 at 3:54 PM
A chilly winter hike around Llyn Cau mountain lake below Cader Idris, in Eryri/Snowdonia this afternoon 🥰 ⛰️❄️